“Too soft,” he said. “Try another pair.”
Different snow boot brands and models have varying degrees of hardness, corresponding to different skiing styles. The ones Wei Zhi was holding were soft, with high mobility and elastic insoles—a standard freestyle boot, unsuitable for beginners learning to glide.
Wei Zhi looked at the boots in the man’s hands, about to say she couldn’t tell the difference as all the boots on the shelf looked the same.
At that moment, the door of the snow gear store was pushed open from outside.
“Old Yu, I’m here to pick up my stuff!”
The afternoon sun poured in, accompanied by a crisp voice, as a slender figure swayed in from outside—
It was a young woman who entered. She was very tall, wearing a light pink hoodie with a white turtleneck sweater underneath, and Air Jordans on her feet. Her hair was tied in a high ponytail, giving her a clean and neat appearance.
She wasn’t wearing a mask, her makeup was exquisite, and she was exceptionally beautiful.
The young woman breezed in like a gust of wind, making such a commotion that Wei Zhi and Shan Chong couldn’t help but turn to look at the door.
Just a second ago, Wei Zhi was wondering who this impressive lady skier was, clearly very skilled. The next second, she heard Shan Chong call out her name in his sleepy tone, neither loud nor soft.
“Huahua.”
…
Hua Yan had originally rushed into the snow gear store with great energy.
Before her heels had even settled, she heard someone in the corner calling her name in a drawling voice. Despite the warmth inside the store, hearing that voice made half of her hair stand on end.
She hit the brakes and saw her master standing not far away, holding a woman-sized Burton snow boot, now staring steadily at her.
Her whole body tensed up, feeling as if even her ponytail had drooped by three millimeters.
“Brother Chong,” the pretty young lady blinked, “What are you doing here?”
“My gloves are worn out, came down the mountain to restock,” Shan Chong casually put the boot he was holding back on the shelf, glancing at the small girl beside him, and slowly added, “Also brought someone down to buy a pair of boots.”
Following his gaze, Hua Yan noticed the person standing next to Shan Chong—a tiny figure, reaching only to Shan Chong’s shoulder and her chin, standing there like a white ball, blinking curiously and eagerly at her.
Oh.
Hua Yan brightened up: “Oh, so it’s her! The legendary little junior sister! I just heard those guys talking about it, that Dai Duo’s snow goggles—”
Shan Chong: “Ahem.”
Hua Yan: “…That Dai Duo’s new snow goggles, did he get them?”
Shan Chong looked impassive: “How would I know?”
Hua Yan came closer, circling Wei Zhi, and after some thought said, “Hmm, she’s a good material for skiing.”
Wei Zhi looked at her curiously until Shan Chong translated from the side: “She means you’re short.”
Wei Zhi: “…”
Hua Yan: “…”
Hua Yan: “Dear Master, could you please refrain from making comments that affect our unity?”
Shan Chong: “Isn’t that what you meant?”
“That’s not what I meant, don’t listen to him,” Hua Yan said to Wei Zhi, then rolled her eyes and asked the only damned straight man present, “…We’ve all heard about you taking on a cute new junior sister as a disciple. Why haven’t you added her to the group chat? Anyone can teach slope changes and edge transitions. Those bored single dogs in the chat would probably kowtow and bow three times to you in excitement, wouldn’t they?”
Shan Chong: “…”
Kowtowing and bowing in excitement…
He could almost picture it.
Shan Chong’s disciple group had hundreds of members, with only a handful of women. Excluding those who already had boyfriends or were even married, the group’s composition was probably purer than an all-boys school—
The members spent their days at ski resorts, from the beginning to the end of the snow season. When the season ended and the ladies had all left, they’d realize: This year, I’m still single.
What attitude could they have towards a little junior sister under the same roof and in the same group?
After hearing Hua Yan’s words, Shan Chong regretted calling her over.
His eyelid twitched as he casually brushed it off: “Slope changes are fundamental, very important. Why let you lot teach haphazardly?”
Hua Yan didn’t pursue the matter further. She greeted Wei Zhi with a smile, then pulled Shan Chong away to look at her new equipment.
— Since the master was here, why not have him examine which board to use first, which binding to pair it with, and how to adjust the binding angles properly?
Shan Chong was used to checking these things for his disciples, so he didn’t find anything odd about it.
“Keep looking at the boots yourself, pick out a few pairs for me to check,” he tossed these words to Wei Zhi before following Hua Yan to the counter.
Wei Zhi was left standing in front of a large wall of snow boot displays. She raised her hand and scratched her head.
She hadn’t even fully processed being left behind.
…
With Shan Chong and Lao Yan gone to check Hua Yan’s equipment, Wei Zhi and Jiang Nanfeng wandered around, touching and looking at various items.
From the corner of her eye, she saw the store owner wheeling out many boxes from the warehouse. The long ones were probably snowboards, and from one square box, Lao Yan pulled out bindings. There were also several shoe boxes.
The snowboards were from Nitro, Burton, and Gray, one from each brand. The Gray was a carving board. Shan Chong picked it up, looked at it, and weighed it in his hand: “Changing careers?”
Hua Yan snatched the board back, afraid her master might break her new board in a fit of displeasure: “Can’t I just go for a random carve to relax when I can’t nail my tricks?… Don’t you have a Mach yourself?!”